How Big Was That Fish  

Posted by Stan Harrington

This female, Shortraker Rockfish, was recently caught in the Bering Sea. The term "caught" is very loosely used in this sentence, the fish was actually scooped up by a trawler, the Kodiak Enterprise, a catcher-processor home ported out of Seattle. Their targeted specie was Pollock consisting of seventy five tons. A wide variety of species are taken by these deep water trawlers and classified as "incidental catches". This Rockfish was just one of those incidental catches. She measured out at 44 inches and weighed in at 60 pounds. The estimated age of the fish, taken from data by the Alaska Fisheries Science Center in Seattle (why is that center located in Seattle if they study Alaska fish) revealed that she was between 90 and 115 years old. Tissue samples were taken to measure her reproductive potential, "the belly was large" and "the ovaries were full of developing embryos" according to a biologist at the center by the name of Spencer. I would have loved to caught this trophy fish, it would have given me great delight to slip the hook and watch it swim off but I guess that is not a option when a fish is taken by a trawler.

Members of my family living in the LA area have recently taking to pursuing Northern Pike as a sport fish, which is also a very generous title bestowed upon this specie of fish. Although, they are not real successful at catching any of these elusive predators, they did manage to snag one earlier this fall on a canoe trip. Knowing that I am a non-believer, unless I can witness documentation, they did devise a measuring device which I cannot refute. Although, I could not help myself in giving their tape measure an appropriate name.

This entry was posted on April 8, 2007 at Sunday, April 08, 2007 . You can follow any responses to this entry through the comments feed .

10 comments

WOW!!! A 7 canner....Now thats a good size Pike.
It was sad that Sue was taken...but I am glad I am not a fish...and just maybe...she is glad that after 90 years...she is no longer raising children...hehe...good grief...could ya imagine having babies at 90????

4/9/07, 7:35 AM

I heard about that fish... I also heard that her and her babies were probably dead before they reached the surface.

4/9/07, 9:02 AM

You are right, this particular trawler was working water depths of 2,100 feet - not much survives their scoops.

4/9/07, 9:39 AM

Too bad that ugly monster won't have her babies! The pike pictured (the one that ate my keys and cost us a morning of ice chopping to retrieve them) has, probably, already bred and will repopulate our streams for the slayers of ammonia-laced fish sammiches. Honestly, I know not how to get past the pissy odor.

4/9/07, 10:06 AM

Were not Northern Pike planted here and not an ideginous fish to Alaska? I hear they are raising havoc. Spreading in tributaries to more lakes than intended.

No mention of an Alaska Fish & Game Observer on that trawler. I'm sure more than 10 Rockfish were pulled up in that set.

4/10/07, 1:12 AM

Helluva fish

4/11/07, 9:09 AM

you know-in re to naming fishing holes on the Anchor and the current predicament that Mr. Imus is in. Perhaps a hole named for the event. The Nappy Headed Hole

4/11/07, 9:13 AM

now suspend me. suspend me and I will be headed North all the sooner.

4/11/07, 9:13 AM

You are so insensitive - I can see that your neices are going to have a field day in educating you - don't forget you will be facing four of them at the HITW plus two more which are niece in laws, they are really radical. I will not support you, you are on your own!

4/11/07, 9:42 AM

There was pike around King salmon, Ugashik Lake areas even 30 years ago. Not in the Anchor River yet, tho'.

4/13/07, 10:59 PM

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